Physics writer Emily Conover joined Science News in 2016. She has a Ph.D. in physics from the University of Chicago, where she studied the weird ways of neutrinos, tiny elementary particles that can zip straight through the Earth. She got her first taste of science writing as a AAAS Mass Media Fellow for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She has previously written for Science Magazine and the American Physical Society. She is a two-time winner of the D.C. Science Writers’ Association Newsbrief award.

All Stories by Emily Conover

  1. Physics

    Despite a new measurement, the neutron’s lifetime is still puzzling

    Two techniques for gauging the subatomic particle’s longevity disagree.

  2. Particle Physics

    The proton’s weak side is just as feeble as physicists thought

    Scientists make the most precise measurement yet of the proton’s weak charge and find it agrees with predictions.

  3. Astronomy

    Gaia delivers a trove of data revealing secrets of the Milky Way

    Astronomers are already using Gaia’s new information to estimate the galaxy’s mass, the diameter of exoplanets and more.

  4. Math

    Real numbers don’t cut it in the real world, this physicist argues

    Physicist Nicolas Gisin argues that real numbers don’t properly represent the natural world, which is a good thing for free will.

  5. Physics

    ‘Time crystals’ created in two new types of materials

    A state of matter that repeats itself in time, not space, was found in certain liquids and a solid.

  6. Physics

    Neutron stars shed neutrinos to cool down quickly

    Scientists find the first clear evidence of rapid cooling of a neutron star by neutrino emission.

  7. Physics

    A DIY take on the early universe may reveal cosmic secrets

    A conglomerate of ultracold atoms reproduces some of the physics of the early universe.

  8. Quantum Physics

    Split atom clouds get entangled in quantum tests

    Scientists create quantum links between clouds consisting of thousands of atoms.

  9. Quantum Physics

    Spooky quantum entanglement goes big in new experiments

    Scientists entangled the motions of two jiggling devices that are visible with a magnifying glass or even the naked eye — if you have keen vision.

  10. Physics

    How ravens caused a LIGO data glitch

    Ravens pecking at frosty pipes caused a glitch in gravitational wave data.

  11. Science & Society

    Here’s why putting a missile defense system in space could be a bad idea

    Expanding missile defense capabilities could put the world on a slippery slope to space warfare.

  12. Physics

    A key constant’s new measurement hints ‘dark photons’ don’t exist

    New measurement of the fine-structure constant is the most precise yet.